What if there were a cheap way employees could get healthier (while reducing healthcare costs) without folks hitting the gym or even disrupting their day.

Sounds like a pitch you’d hear on late night TV. No gimmicks here –  all your company needs to do is invest in some pedometers.

Pedometers are a low-tech but high payoff tool. Check out the results of a 12-week pedometer challenge, sponsored by National Grid.

The average employee participant logged 8,772 steps per day, translating into:

• 38 minutes of exercise daily, and
• 6.4 lbs. lost.

Seems simply making people aware of how much they are – or aren’t – moving during the workday gets them walking more.

Considering that it will cost your company around $10 per employee (buying in bulk can run as low as a buck apiece), it’s one investment no company can afford not to make.